Bottle organizer

ABSTRACT

A bottle organizer includes a generally vertical wall, a generally horizontal floor proximate to the generally vertical wall, and a spacing member positioned along the generally vertical wall. The spacing member has a portion (which may be curved) that protrudes in a plane that is generally parallel to the horizontal floor and generally perpendicular to the vertical wall. The protruding portion is at a distance from the floor that corresponds to the height of a neck portion of a bottle standing upright on the floor. The spacing member may include alternating straight and curved portions. The vertical wall may be one of two walls, which may be generally parallel and coextensive with each other. The bottle organizer may include a generally cuboid enclosure, in which the spacing member is slidingly disposed.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates generally to bottle organizers and, moreparticularly, to beverage organizers that are incorporated intorefrigerated compartments, such as those used on passenger aircraft.

BACKGROUND

Keeping food and beverages chilled to the proper temperature isimportant in any context. In certain contexts, such as where space islimited and where quick access to the chilled items is required, properrefrigeration can be a challenge. For example, in the context of apassenger aircraft, bottled beverages such as wine or Champaign areusually stored in a refrigerated compartment near the cockpit. Due tospace limitations, however, the compartment tends to be very small anddifficult to organize. Furthermore, due to the individual nature ofdrink orders flight attendants are often hard-pressed to pull bottlesout and pour drinks for passengers in a timely fashion. As a result,beverage containers are sometimes quickly placed in the refrigerator,with the containers pushed against a wall of the container and thecontainers pushed against each other without space between. This resultsin non-uniform cooling of the containers, and makes it more difficult tocool the space in the refrigerator. Another problem with manyrefrigerated compartments is that the beverages do not cool to a uniformtemperature. Thus, for example, one bottle of chardonnay might bechilled to the appropriate temperature, while an adjacent bottle may betoo warm.

SUMMARY

In accordance with the foregoing, a new and improved bottle organizer isprovided. In an embodiment of the invention, the bottle organizerincludes a generally vertical wall, a generally horizontal floorproximate to the generally vertical wall, and a spacing memberpositioned along the generally vertical wall. The spacing member has aportion (which may be curved) that protrudes in a plane that isgenerally parallel to the horizontal floor and generally perpendicularto the vertical wall. The protruding portion may be disposed at adistance from the floor that corresponds approximately to the height ofa shoulder or neck portion of a bottle standing upright on the floor, soas to stabilize and maintain the bottle in an upright and spacedposition The spacing member may include alternating straight and curvedportions. The vertical wall may be one of two walls, which may begenerally parallel and coextensive with each other. The bottle organizermay include a generally cuboid enclosure, in which the spacing member isslidingly disposed. The invention provides for easier and moreconvenient placement and removal of containers within a refrigerationcompartment where the bottle organizer is disposed. The invention willfurther promote quicker “pull down” (achieving a desired cooltemperature) and more even temperature distribution within therefrigeration compartment.

In one embodiment, the spacing member is generally unshaped, and itsside is attached to the vertical wall.

In another embodiment, the vertical wall is one of at least two verticalwalls, and each of the two vertical walls has a bracket attached to it.The brackets are configured to slidingly receive the spacing member.

In yet another embodiment, the bottle organizer has a generallyhorizontal floor that extends between and is joined with first andsecond generally vertical walls, and a back wall that is generallyvertical and generally perpendicular to the first and second walls. Inthis embodiment, the first and second walls, the back and the floordefine an enclosure for storing bottles.

In yet another embodiment, the spacing member is generally cylindricaland elongated, and spacing member runs along first and second verticalwalls and along a back wall.

In another embodiment of the invention, the bottle organizer includes afirst generally vertical wall, a second generally vertical wall that isgenerally parallel to the first wall, a generally horizontal floorextending between the first and second walls and forming a junction witheach of the first and second walls, and a generally unshaped, elongatedmember. The elongated member has a first side that is attached to thefirst wall, and a second side that is attached to the second wall.Furthermore, the elongated member is oriented in a plane that isgenerally parallel to the floor and generally perpendicular to the firstand second walls. The elongated member also has a curved portion adaptedto separate at least two vertically oriented bottles standing on thefloor.

In another embodiment, the bottle organizer includes a pair ofsupporting members that facilitate the attachment of the elongatedmember to the first and second walls. In this embodiment, one of thesupporting members is secured to the first wall and the other is securedto the second wall.

In another embodiment, the bottle organizer includes a first enclosureand a second enclosure disposed within the first enclosure. In thisembodiment, the second enclosure includes the first and second walls andthe floor.

In still another embodiment, the bottle organizer includes pairs ofsupporting members that facilitate the attachment of the elongatedmember to the first and second walls. In this embodiment, one of eachpair of supporting members is secured to the first wall and the other ofeach pair is secured to the second wall. Each pair of the plurality isdisposed at a height above the floor to facilitate the storage of adifferent size of bottle within the elongated member.

In still another embodiment, the elongated member slides into acompartment defined by the first and second walls and the floor, andengages the first and second walls via one of a plurality of pairs ofbrackets. In this embodiment, each pair is positioned at a height thatcorresponds to one of multiple sizes of bottles.

In still another embodiment of the invention, the bottle organizerincludes an elongated member that is generally cylindrical along itslength and that is bent into a generally u-shaped configuration along agenerally horizontal plane. The elongated member has generally straightportions and generally curved portions that alternate with one another.In this embodiment, at least one pair of the generally curved portionsprotrude inwardly along the horizontal plane toward one another. Theelongated member is disposed at a height that corresponds approximatelywith the height of a shoulder or neck of a bottle that is oriented in agenerally vertical direction.

In another embodiment, the bottle organizer includes two generallyvertical walls that are generally parallel to one another, and bracketsattached to each of the walls to support two sides of the elongatedmember. One side of the elongated member may slide into one bracket andthe other side of the elongated member may slide into the bracketattached to the one wall.

In yet another embodiment, the bottle organizer includes a firstgenerally vertical wall, a second generally vertical wall that isgenerally parallel to the first wall, and a generally horizontal floorextending between the first and second walls and forming a junction witheach of the first and second walls. In this embodiment, the generallycurved portions of the elongated member provide spacing between each ofmultiple bottles.

In yet another embodiment, the bottle organizer includes a firstgenerally vertical wall, a second generally vertical wall that isgenerally parallel to the first wall, a brackets attached to the firstwall, one of which supports a side of the elongated member, and bracketattached to the second wall, one of which supports another side of theelongated member. In this embodiment, each of the brackets attached tothe first wall correspond to one of the brackets attached to the secondwall, thereby forming pairs of brackets. Each pair of bracketscorresponds approximately to the shoulder or neck height of a differentsized bottle than each of the other pairs of brackets.

In still another embodiment of the invention, the bottle organizerincludes a generally horizontal floor extending between the first andsecond walls and forming a junction with each of the first and secondwalls. In this embodiment, the generally curved portions of theelongated member provide spacing between each of multiple bottles thatare standing on the floor in an upright position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a bottle organizer according to an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a spacing member according to an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a front view of the bottle organizer of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 illustrates a top-down view of the bottle organizer of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 illustrates a side view of the bottle organizer of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 illustrates the placement of bottles in the bottle organizer ofFIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention is generally directed to a bottle organizer. Referring toFIGS. 1, 3-5, various embodiments of the bottle organizer will now bedescribed. The bottle organizer, generally labeled 10, is generallycuboid in shape, and includes a first generally cuboid enclosure 12 anda second generally cuboid enclosure 14 located within the firstenclosure 10. The first generally cuboid enclosure may be a variety ofthings, including a compartment on a passenger aircraft, or acompartment of service cart. The second enclosure 14 has first side wall16, a second side wall 18 generally parallel to the first side wall, afloor 20 that is attached to, and extends between, the first and secondside walls 16 and 18. The second enclosure 14 also has a back wall 22that is attached to the first and second side walls 16 and 18 and to thefloor 20. The back wall 22 is oriented generally perpendicular to thefirst and second side walls 16 and 18 as well as to the floor 20. Eachof the first and second side walls 16 and 18 has a leaf portion 24 thatextends beyond the plane of the back wall 22. Each leaf portion has anumber of holes 26 through which screws, rivets, or other fasteners canbe passed for the purpose of securing the second enclosure 14 to theinside of the first enclosure 12.

Behind the back wall 20 is refrigeration equipment (not shown),including a compressor unit, expansion valve, cooling coils, and a fan.The back wall 20 has a set 31 of vent holes that permit air that isblown by the fan to pass over the cooling coils and into the secondenclosure 14. A set 28 of bars helps to prevent objects fromaccidentally being inserted into the set 31 of vent holes.

Each of the side walls 16 and 18 has at least one set of supportingmembers attached to it. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, eachside wall has, attached to it, a first supporting member 30 (at or about2 inches above the floor 20), a second supporting member 32 (at or about4 inches above the floor 20), a third supporting member 34 (at or about8.2 inches above the floor 20), and a fourth supporting members 36 (ator about 12.4 inches above the floor 20). Thus, there are four sets ofsupporting member in the illustrated embodiment. Each supporting memberin the illustrated embodiment is a generally u-shaped bracket, althoughother types of supporting members are possible. At least one of the setsof supporting members on the side walls 16 and 18 holds a spacing member38. The spacing member 38 may be inserted and removed by sliding it intothe second enclosure using one of the sets of supporting members,starting from the end farthest from the back wall 22 and pushing ittoward the back wall 22.

Referring to FIG. 2, an embodiment of the spacing member 38 will now bedescribed. The spacing member 38 includes a cylindrical, elongatedmember. The elongated member is generally u-shaped and has a thicknessof F. The elongated member has a first side, having a length of A, and asecond side, opposite the first side, whose length is also A. Startingfrom the upper right and moving to the left and counterclockwise, thespacing member 38 has a short straight portion 40, followed by aquarter-circular curved portion 42, a straight segment 44, and ahalf-circular curved portion 46 whose radius is R. The length B includestwice the radius R, plus the length of the short straight portion 40.These basic elements are repeated until the spacing member 38 turns ator about 90 degrees at a rounded corner 48. Proximate to the roundedcorner is an indentation 49 that cooperates with a protrusion in one ofthe supporting members to keep the supporting member 38 relativelystationary after insertion. The indent has a thickness of S. The roundedcorner has length of C and a width of E. After the rounded corner 48,the cylindrical member has a long, straight portion 50, having a lengthof D, which ends in a second rounded corner 48, at which point thecylindrical member turns at or about 90 degrees. Following the secondrounded corner, the cylindrical member has short straight portions 40,quarter-circular portions 44, and half-circular portions 46 in arepeating pattern as shown in FIG. 2.

While there are many possible sizes and configurations of the spacingunit 38, in one embodiment, A=11.56 inches, B=4.12 inches, C=0.94inches, D=9.55 inches, E=0.66 inches, F=0.15 inches, R=0.44 inches, andS=0.125 inches.

As can be seen in FIG. 2, the spacing member 38 has several protrudingportions, each of which is made up of two straight segments 44 and onehalf-circular curved portion 46. These protruding portions protrude intothe plane of the spacing member 38 in pairs, with one of the pair beingon one side of the spacing member 38 and the other of the pair being onthe opposite side of the spacing member 38. Each of the protrudingportions provides spacing between bottles of the bottle organizer. Thisis more clearly illustrated in FIG. 6, in which bottles 60 are show asbeing placed within the organizer 10. The bottles 60 are separated byprotruding portions of the spacing member 38. Note that the spacingmember is attached to the walls 16 and 18 via the first supportingmembers 30, and that the first supporting members are disposed at aheight above the floor 20 that corresponds approximately to the heightof the shoulders of the bottles 60. The bottles 60 in this example are 8inch tall bottles. However, the bottle organizer 10 can also accommodate10 inch tall bottles (by sliding the spacing member 38 into the secondsupporting members 32) and 12 inch tall bottles (by sliding the spacingmember 38 into the third supporting members 34). For each size bottle,the spacing member 38 can be placed at a height that correspondsapproximately to the shoulder of that size of bottle. Furthermore,multiple spacing members 38 may be put into the bottle organizer 10 soas to accommodate different sized bottles simultaneously. For example, aspacing member 38 may be inserted into each of the first, second, andthird supporting members 30, 32, and 34.

Shown merely by way of example in FIG. 2 is an embodiment of theinvention used with bottles having a shoulder. The invention may also beused for bottles, such as a juice bottle, that do not have a shoulder,but have a reduced diameter neck. In that case, the spacing member 38may be disposed approximately at the height of the neck of the bottle.In either case, according to an embodiment of the invention, the spacingmember may be disposed at the neck or shoulder of a bottle—the portionof the bottle having a reduced diameter with respect to the diameter ofthe bottle at the bottom. In addition, the invention may be practiced toretain, stabilize and space bottles, cans or cartons, such as asubstantially cylindrical metal juice can or a substantially cuboid orprism shaped cardboard milk carton, that may not have a reduced diameterportion. In such a case, the spacing member 38 may be disposed at aheight less than the height of the substantially cylindrical bottle orcan. As should be understood by one of skill in the art, when the term“bottle” is referred to herein, it is meant to be considered broadly andmay include a variety of type and shapes, such as a wine bottle, acuboid shaped milk carton, a cylindrical shaped juice can and othershape and types of bottles.

It can be seen from the foregoing that a new and useful bottle organizerhas been described. The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” andsimilar referents in the context of describing the invention (especiallyin the context of the following claims) are to be construed to coverboth the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein orclearly contradicted by context. Recitation of ranges of values hereinare merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referringindividually to each separate value falling within the range, unlessotherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated intothe specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methodsdescribed herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwiseindicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The useof any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”)provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the inventionand does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unlessotherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construedas indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice ofthe invention.

1. A bottle organizer comprising: a generally vertical wall; a generallyhorizontal floor proximate to the generally vertical wall; and a spacingmember positioned along the generally vertical wall, the spacing membercomprising a portion that protrudes in a plane that is generallyparallel to the horizontal floor and generally perpendicular to thevertical wall, the protruding portion being spaced at a distance fromthe floor.
 2. The bottle organizer of claim 1 where the protrudingportion is disposed at a distance from the floor that correspondsapproximately to the height of a reduced diameter portion of a bottlestanding upright on the floor.
 3. The bottle organizer of claim 1,wherein the spacing member comprises alternating straight and curvedportions.
 4. The bottle organizer of claim 1, wherein the protrudingportion is generally curved.
 5. The bottle organizer of claim 1, whereinthe spacing member is generally unshaped, wherein a side of the spacingmember is attached to the vertical wall.
 6. The bottle organizer ofclaim 1, wherein the vertical wall is a first wall, the bottle organizerfurther comprising a second generally vertical wall that is generallyparallel to, and coextensive with the first wall.
 7. The bottleorganizer of claim 1, wherein the vertical wall is a first wall, thebottle organizer further comprising: a second generally vertical wallthat is generally parallel to the first wall; a pair of brackets, one ofwhich is attached to the first wall and one of which is attached to thesecond wall, the brackets being configured to slidingly receive thespacing member.
 8. The bottle organizer of claim 1, wherein the verticalwall is a first wall, the bottle organizer further comprising: a secondgenerally vertical wall that is generally parallel to the first wall; agenerally horizontal floor that extends between and is joined with thefirst and second walls; a back wall that is generally vertical andgenerally perpendicular to the first and second walls, the first andsecond walls, the back and the floor defining an enclosure for storingbottles.
 9. The bottle organizer of claim 1, wherein the spacing memberis generally cylindrical and elongated, wherein the vertical wall is afirst wall, the bottle organizer further comprising: a second generallyvertical wall that is generally parallel to the first wall; a generallyhorizontal floor that extends between and is joined with the first andsecond walls; a back wall that is generally vertical and generallyperpendicular to the first and second walls, the first and second walls,wherein the spacing member runs along the first, second and back walls.10. The bottle organizer of claim 1, wherein bottle organizer is agenerally cuboid enclosure, of which the vertical wall is a part, and inwhich the spacing member is slidingly disposed.
 11. A bottle organizercomprising: a first generally vertical wall; a second generally verticalwall that is generally parallel to the first wall; a generallyhorizontal floor extending between the first and second walls andforming a junction with each of the first and second walls; and agenerally u-shaped, elongated member having a first side that isattached to the first wall, and a second side that is attached to thesecond wall, the elongated member being oriented in a plane that isgenerally parallel to the floor and generally perpendicular to the firstand second walls, the elongated member comprising a curved portionadapted to separate at least two vertically oriented bottles standing onthe floor.
 12. The bottle organizer of claim 11, further comprising apair of supporting members that facilitate the attachment of theelongated member to the first and second walls, one of the supportingmembers being secured to the first wall and the other being secured tothe second wall.
 13. The bottle organizer of claim 11, furthercomprising: a first enclosure; a second enclosure disposed within thefirst enclosure, the second enclosure including the first and secondwalls and the floor.
 14. The bottle organizer of claim 11, furthercomprising a plurality of pairs of supporting members that facilitatethe attachment of the elongated member to the first and second walls,one of each pair of supporting members being secured to the first walland the other of each pair being secured to the second wall, each pairof the plurality being disposed at a height above the floor tofacilitate the storage of a different size of bottle within theelongated member.
 15. The bottle organizer of claim 11, wherein theelongated member slides into a compartment defined by the first andsecond walls and the floor and engages the first and second walls viaone of a plurality of pairs of brackets, each pair being positioned at aheight that corresponds to one of a plurality of sizes of bottles.
 16. Abottle organizer comprising: an elongated member that is generallycylindrical along its length and that is bent into a generally u-shapedconfiguration along a generally horizontal plane, the elongated membercomprising a plurality of generally straight portions and a plurality ofgenerally curved portions that alternate with one another, at least onepair of the generally curved portions protruding inwardly along thehorizontal plane toward one another, the elongated member being disposedat a height spaced above the base upon which a bottle stands.
 17. Thebottle organizer of claim 16 where the distance between the base and theelongated-member corresponds approximately with the height of a reduceddiameter portion of a gene rally vertically oriented bottle.
 18. Thebottle organizer of claim 17, further comprising: a first generallyvertical wall; a second generally vertical wall that is generallyparallel to the first wall; and a bracket attached to the first wall andsupporting a first side of the elongated member; a bracket attached tothe second wall and supporting a second side of the elongated member.19. The bottle organizer of claim 16, wherein the first side of theelongated member slides into the bracket attached to the first wall, andthe second side of the elongated member slides into the bracket attachedto the second wall.
 20. The bottle organizer of claim 16, furthercomprising: a first generally vertical wall; a second generally verticalwall that is generally parallel to the first wall; and a generallyhorizontal floor extending between the first and second walls andforming a junction with each of the first and second walls, wherein thebottle is one of a plurality of bottles, each of which stands verticallyon the floor, wherein the generally curved portions of the elongatedmember provide spacing between each of the plurality of bottles.
 21. Thebottle organizer of claim 16, further comprising: a first generallyvertical wall; a second generally vertical wall that is generallyparallel to the first wall; a plurality of brackets attached to thefirst wall, one of which supports a first side of the elongated member;and a plurality of brackets attached to the second wall, one of whichsupports a second side of the elongated member, each of the plurality ofbrackets attached to the first wall corresponding to one of theplurality of brackets attached to the second wall, thereby forming aplurality of pairs of brackets, wherein each pair of bracketscorresponds to the neck height of a different sized bottle than each ofthe other pairs of brackets.
 22. The bottle organizer of claim 21,further comprising: a generally horizontal floor extending between thefirst and second walls and forming a junction with each of the first andsecond walls, wherein the generally curved portions of the elongatedmember provide spacing between each of a plurality of bottles that arestanding on the floor in an upright position.